Jammu's Diwali Fires: What the Warehouse Market Blaze Showed and the Fire-Safety SOP Now Being Proposed

On Sunday night, around 9:30 pm, a fire began in a godown near Bikram Chowk in Jammu's Warehouse Market. The Tribune reports a firecracker reportedly landed in a cotton store; the flames reached neighbouring shops holding edible-oil containers, at least ten shops were gutted, and the fire was brought under control by about midnight. No casualties were reported.

How big was the Diwali fire count?

The Tribune counted more than 60 fire incidents across Jammu division over the festival: nearly 30 in Jammu district, ten combined in Samba and Kathua, nine in Doda, eight in Udhampur and Reasi, three in Kishtwar, and four combined in Rajouri, Poonch and Ramban. Major Jammu-district fires included a five-storey commercial building at Pahari Mohalla, a medical store's building at Shalimar and a hardware godown at Gangyal.

What is being proposed?

Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh, who visited the site on 9 November, said the incident showed the need for better preparedness in crowded commercial and fire-sensitive locations. He called for a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) covering both prevention (hazard identification, stronger preventive arrangements, safety awareness) and emergency response, to be drafted jointly by Fire and Emergency Services, J&K, and the Traders' Federation. He also asked the government to consider compensation for traders; that request is part of the same statement.

What traders say

Warehouse Association president Deepak Gupta told reporters, as reported by The Tribune, that only two fire tenders came at first despite repeated calls and more arrived about an hour and a half later, and traders asked for responsible officials to be identified. The Tribune's report does not carry a response from the Fire and Emergency Services department. Greater Kashmir reports that traders also credited the fire service's response with preventing loss of life. Both accounts are attributed; neither has been independently established here.

What it means if you work or rent in a market

• An SOP is a proposal so far; no draft, deadline or date has been announced.
• Ask your landlord or employer where the exits are, whether the fire extinguishers are in date, and who holds the keys after hours.
• Storage of cloth, cotton and oil in shared buildings is where the reports show fires spreading fastest.

Sources: Greater Kashmir; The Tribune. Photo: the charred market in the Warehouse (Nehru Market) area after the fire, ANI via The Tribune.